


helix

by prettyshiroic (kcgane)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Angst, Bittersweet, HAPPY SHIRO LOVES YOU BABY DAY, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Reincarnation, Slice of Life, he is looking at keith., here's something for this :'))), i think reincarnation is probably the easiest tag for this, it's more like a time loop between lifetimes they keep living
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-23
Updated: 2017-06-23
Packaged: 2018-11-18 04:40:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11283909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kcgane/pseuds/prettyshiroic
Summary: “You seem familiar… I feel like I know you from somewhere.”Keith shrugged, dropping the change into the man’s palm before closing the cash register.“Sorry. I think you have the wrong person.”-It started the same way each time, with Takashi Shirogane looking at Keith.





	helix

**Author's Note:**

> this is kind of abstract i guess. more notes at the end! i don't want to say too much here. but all you need to know is that the numbers aren't in order, and they represent different 'lives' (eg. 7 = the seventh life/regeneration). 
> 
> 8) 
> 
> warnings for passing mentions of alcohol & injury. be safe!

It started the same way each time, with Takashi Shirogane looking at Keith. Sometimes Keith remembered that name and it eclipsed everything he was in dark swooping shadows of a past - or future - he could never quite uncoil. Sometimes Keith didn’t remember Shiro. Sometimes he didn't remember what was going to happen. Sometimes Keith did. And on all of those occasions to date, Shiro never remembered. So close but impossibly far. Yet none of that changed this peculiar glitch in the universe, designed just for the two of them: an underwhelming conversation, _their only one._  

In some lives, this conversation shook Keith to the core. In other lives it was just another exchange of idle words that happened between two strangers. Just one conversation on one day out of thousands he would have in his life. The universe looped and twisted itself into all sorts of distorted shapes, yanking the string that wove them together straight into the nexus of it all. 

So maybe they were soulmates. Or maybe they weren’t. Maybe there was something more cataclysmic at play here, something powerful enough to bend, break and fold the very dynamics of space and _time_ over and over again _._ All for this one moment that _disappointingly_ dissipated in the face of their futures, a moment that couldn't withstand the gravity it had tried to offer. 

Keith never believed in fate or destiny or _anything like that._ Blaming events on some higher power just took responsibility and credibility away from what you did yourself. Ultimately, Keith believed in making your own path and choices. Carve it out, stick to it. But in those lifetimes he remembered, scattered throughout his existence, he did believe in something.

He believed in Shiro.

That still wasn’t enough. 

**-320-**

“Are you just gonna stand there staring, or are you gonna talk?”

Keith raised an eyebrow pointedly at the stranger who had caught his gaze on the outskirts of the ring. It had been a good training session with his coach, and improvements had been made. Though there had _also_ been some unexpected setbacks. Because in the heat of the final fights, Keith could feel eyes on him. It wasn’t unusual for people to gather and watch the kickboxing sessions. But something was tugging him from the action. His movements slowed, his grit unwavering jabs and kicks faltered. Sharp focus was stretched out into something intangible and languid, unsure where exactly it wanted to be. In the ring, or out.

His attention should’ve been on his opponent, _on the match._ That’s where it _always_ had been. Unwavering. 

But right there and then it hadn’t been there at all. It wavered. Keith had drifted, almost too far to pull it back and win. A stunt like that in a _real_ match could be make or break.

Now here Keith was; towel slung over his shoulders in the locker room, standing with the perpetrator. The one who had reeled him into their orbit so effortlessly. This enigmatic stranger who looked at him how nobody else had done before: with genuine interest. More than that though. It wasn’t self-serving interest. There was a tender, compassionate quality to the corners of those eyes that unnerved him. An expression that soft cast Keith's way was rare, yet alone from a _stranger._ Impossible.

“I-” the stranger began. Pause. Laughing nervously, he brought the prosthetic hand up to push through his hair. “Sorry, I - have we met?”

“Really.” Keith drawled in disbelief. He wasn’t _self-conscious_  about his physical form _,_ exactly. But his shirt was soaked with sweat, noticeable patches had the fabric sticking to him. Face was dripping with moisture, skin prickly and flushed. His heart still pumping from the sparring, and _then_ there was the locker room smell. Hardly the time or place for  _any_ kind of talk. 

“You’re doing this... _now_?” Lips twitched into a tiny smirk. _Interesting._ That was definitely a first.

Realisation seemed to flash across the stranger’s face, his own face heating. A hand came up suddenly, waving placatingly away the implications. 

“No! it’s not like that!”

Keith grinned, running the towel through his hair. The next words caught him off guard.

“You just seem familiar."

Alarm bells he didn’t realise were lodged between his ribs weregoing off. The sensation of unease and _unrest_ was so prevalent Keith almost had to hold onto the bench to keep upright. With it, the tone shifted immediately. Everything turned on its axis. His hands were shaking, for some _weird_ reason. Maybe he needed to eat. It had been a pretty intense, but rewarding, training session. Hitching a breath, Keith steadied himself. Okay.  _Okay._

"I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

Through the mirror, a soft gaze lingered a second too long. Keith stared back, hands clasping the side tightly. There were pressing questions rising up in him now. _Who are you, why do you look at me like that, who are you who are you-_

Seized by sudden unexpected panic, Keith pushed back from the bench. He reached for his gym bag and slung it over his shoulders hastily. Not one to ignore his instincts, he let the innate desire to _leave_ take hold. It was imperative, _whatever_ this was - it was devouring him whole relentlessly. Keith had to get out of here. This feeling was too much. He didn’t _understand_ what was happening, and he didn’t want to. Things had just started looking up with the kickboxing, with this whole chapter of his life. He couldn't blow it now. 

Heading to the door, pace brisk and resolute, Keith offered a casual salute in the direction of the curious stranger.

“Sorry. I think you have the wrong person.”

His voice was even.

Ten minutes later, his pulse - still - was not.   

**-793-**

"You seem familiar," Shiro said in the booth once they were off air. 

Headphones sliding off his ears, Keith queued up the next song to play across the radio. 

He knew the words by heart to this song. And he also knew all the words to this conversation. He'd heard it,  _been part of it,_ enough times. 

Keith pushed the headphones back onto his ears, tuning into the broadcast.

He could see Shiro's lips moving, tracing out the next line. 

 

**-110-**

It was a late Wednesday evening when it happened. Keith was pulling pints at the local bar, recently having reached twenty-eight and honestly having nothing much to show for it. Spending most of his time working at the bar helped keep that thought at bay, at least. Dipping into his own mind was something he’d rather avoid. What lay there at the crux was offsetting, _upsetting._ A man he didn’t even know existed, a memory he couldn’t place.

Wiping down the bar, Keith flicked his gaze up to the door as it opened. In walked the man with a face that snatched his breath and etched itself into his eyelids. Every blink. Every breath. _Every lifetime._ Shiro crept in, his presence filled every crevasse of their fissured timeline. Keith’s _veins_ were full of him. Takashi Shirogane was seared onto his skin. But that wasn’t quite it, either. It ran much deeper than that for reasons Keith couldn’t fathom.

Either way, Takashi Shirogane was seared onto his soul.  

And their souls were tethered together, forever playing out this moment.

Their eyes met. His heart imploded violently in his chest. The shockwaves ripped through him in that grand overwhelming way they always did. Keith had to tear his eyes away. They were burning, _crying._ But as he threw his gaze elsewhere, his hand came back dry when pressed against his eyes. Well. This is was it. This was happening.

Keith had to steel himself for this, prepare to witness the beginning of the end all over again. The most important person in his life was about to ebb in and out of focus. Always so fast he could never catch it.

In this lifetime, Keith had spent agonising hours trawling through his mind in the solace of his apartment, trying to piece together whatever he could from other lifetimes. It wasn’t easy, and amounted to nothing. Because realising there _were_ other lifelines was the hardest part. All he had now from countless nights of analysis was a name. And every attempt at following the trail of that name, trying to just _find Shiro himself_ led him through endless rabbit holes.

Shiro came into his life whenever he wanted.

It wasn't something they could dictate, or choose. 

Like now - on a doubleshift, with tired lines pressed into Keith's face. It was now, Shiro leant against the bar. Just like every other time, he was looking at Keith. Keith could _feel_ the intensity of his gaze. Only this time when he turned, he found himself openly gaping at the expression. Shiro was looking at him with something akin to sheer _fascination._ Surprise was the most common one, as was confusion. This was different. Lips were slightly parted, eyes a little hooded but gleaming. Keith felt the words brewing on this tongue against his will. He wanted to push away from this, _say something else._ Let it stretch out more.

But that was not in his control. Keith had no power here. He could feel the staggering force of the universe ploughing through them. He wouldn't yield to it, _respect it._ But he still bowed unwillingly. He hated it every time. 

This moment never lasted long. The countdown had begun, and they had minutes.

Though there was still terrifying uncertainty. Uncertainty that this _would_ go as predicted. One day this routine may change. One day the pattern could break. Given the nature of events, the frustrating cycles they were stuck in, surely a change would be more earth-shattering than this. And Keith knew, then. This was not one of those moments. He didn't even know if those moments _could_ exist. Setting the cloth down, Keith steeled a breath. Eyes pressed shut. Then with firm purpose, the most purpose he had felt in his entire life - _lives,_ sometimes - Keith let himself fall into all of this.

It wasn’t acceptance. It was weighted _resignation,_ something sorrowful prodded at his eyes. But he didn’t indulge it, _couldn’t_ indulge it. Not here. Not when Shiro was here. The time for heavy contemplation and acknowledging loss was later, in the privacy of his bedroom amidst the scrawled notes. _Takashi Shirogane. He looks at me. I start the conversation. I always start the conversation._ That was a concerning anomaly - indication this was significant. Because Keith kept himself to himself, rarely being the _initiator_ in needless dialogue.

Then again, this was far from needless. To Keith, this felt essential. Something that could have been the sole reason for his path leading him out here. This was a moment prophesied in his timeline, a landmark. No, a lifemark. Bar lighting spilled down, softening Shiro’s jaw. The eyes didn’t change.

“Are you just gonna stand there staring, or are you gonna talk?”

Fond amusement that didn’t feel the slightest bit out of place drifted over his words. Because it was Shiro. His tone had Allura raising her eyebrows as she fixed the regulars some drinks. Keith kept his attention honed in on Shiro, who was looking at him.

“I…” Shiro’s eyes were a little glazed over. The telltale sounds of intoxication creeping up his face in the form of a flush, sluggish responses and slower blinks. Tilting his head, Keith watched curiously. He had seen Shiro in all sorts of states, drunk had never been one of them. It would’ve been funnier, if they both were on the same page. Now, however, they were in entirely different places.

“Sorry -...” The words were a little slurred, meshed together as Shiro continued to look Keith’s way. He almost stumbled on his footing as he got closer. “Have we met?”

Maybe it was the haze of alcohol in Shiro’s system, maybe it was the buzz of _today being the day,_ but this was different to the times that had come before. Less intrusive _._ The ones where Keith remembered were mostly swept up in chaos, adding to the swell of a growing fire that threatened to destroy him.

This was a dull ember. Warm and soft. Understated. It was scripted by the universe, but still felt organic. Raw. Something private between them, something to make the most of even with limited words.

“Really,” Keith smirked, ducking his head to stifle the laughter. “You’re doing this now?” _Like this, drunk off your ass._

Shiro’s eyes widened; a gasp quickly followed. He sounded indignant almost, more embarrassed than he once had been.

“No, it’s… not like that! You just seem familiar.”

Pause.

Keith sucked in a sharp breath, clutching the empty glass tightly. Already, they were nearing the end. _But it had just begun._ Shiro stared at the empty glass in Keith’s hand a fraction too long. There was something pensive stewing behind his grey eyes. Turning his back, Keith filled the glass with ice. He knew how this was going to go, now. They weren’t ever given many words to work with. And even if parts of that conversation would stick with him until it was time for the cycle to repeat in another life, Keith couldn’t do a damn thing to change it. The phone beeped in Shiro’s pocket and Keith shovelled a fraction too much ice into the glass at the sound.

A few trickles hit his hand. The fire was gone. Now everything was ice cold.

Shiro pulled out the phone, staring at it. Keith followed his gaze quietly. Fingers twitched. He could grab the phone, _make a place for himself in Shiro’s life_ . Fight underhanded against the universe. It would be easy, he could put his number into the phone and wait for Shiro to call back one day. He could do _something_ that didn’t require speaking. Keith’s hand reached out, a little shakily. His fingers grazed over the lockscreen. But Shiro seemed to decide six sets of ringing was _more_ than enough to ignore. The phone got further from Keith, as did Shiro. He could feel the warmth deteriorating. Keith chased it to no avail. It resurfaced in a powerful final flourish as Shiro looked his way for the final time. He looked at Keith apologetically, focus meandering.  _Oh._ This was it. 

“I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

Keith smiled at that. It was a sad, weak smile.

If _anyone_ should be apologetic, it was Keith. Keith was the one who _knew the truth,_ who remembered. And once again, he was at the mercy of powers bigger than the pair of them. The oncoming words were shoved into his mouth before Keith can even dispute them. He wanted to ask more, he wanted _break this exasperating chain_ \- even if it were for a second. But because the universe didn’t work that way and Keith’s life had never been straightforward, the dismissive words slipped out.

“Sorry. I think you have the wrong person.”

With that, Shiro nodded lightly. He pressed the ringing phone to his ear.

And then he left.  

Keith didn’t realise the glass had fallen out his hands, until he caught the flash of red smeared over his fingers. 

**-267-**

The mission had gone so disastrously wrong. And now the very agents Keith was supposed to be tracking undercover were hot on his tail. Racing down the hotel corridor, Keith looked for his getaway. Urgency forcing him to push faster. Harder. Because getting caught was absolutely not an option. Getting caught would end in one thing and that would be the end of everything the agents of Altea had strived to achieve.

On his right, he spotted the stairs. Considering he was on the fifteenth floor, the stairs would be too long. He wouldn’t make it out in time. A ping ahead gave him the answer he needed. It was a little more impulsively than _instinctively_ that Keith threw himself into the elevator. The man inside was startled, but said nothing and simply stepped aside to allow Keith in. Just as the doors began closing, the oncoming threat appeared at the end of the hallway. Well. That was some pretty good timing.

Dusting off his suit, which was extremely uncomfortable to walk and _exist in_ yet alone run in, Keith looked over at the man who still said nothing. Three more floors passed this way. The stranger continued to glance over to him, with a look that was more probing and curious than anything else. Frustrated, Keith leant against the wall.

“Are you just gonna stand there staring, or are you gonna talk?”

“I- sorry, I - have we met?”

Keith had been on five consecutive missions, countless countries and was practically always on the move. Remembering one face out of _hundreds, thousands,_ was not something he was inclined to do. Not when he already had a whole bunch of faces he was meant to be remembering. Abruptly the doors opened on the third floor, revealing a group of people approaching that _definitely_ were after Keith.

“Really - you’re doing this _now_ ?” Keith hissed in sheer disbelief. Talk about _bad timing_ to get out the lift _._

“No, it’s not like that. You just... seem familiar.” The man said, surprisingly unfazed by the fact Keith had gestured for him to follow out the elevator. Now the pair of them were walking together promptly, being _followed._ And here this guy was, asking all sorts of weird questions and making big abstract statements that made absolutely no sense. A few more corners and deceptive turns, they appeared to have shaken the agents off. _For now._ Luckily, the real threat here were the homeground agents, the ones at HQ Allura was planning to infiltrate.

The stranger, however, seemed preoccupied with different things. The epitome of calm and collected, perhaps. Keith couldn’t tell. There was something elusive about all of this, making it difficult to decipher. And once again, the stranger was looking at Keith in that impossible, _incomprehensible_ way. Keith waited. A few seconds passed, and the stranger that hardly felt like a stranger at all finally spoke.

“I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

Keith’s watch buzzed, displaying a message from Allura. It was time to move.

“Sorry,” he said, backing up towards the window. “I think you have the wrong person.”

**-37-**

“You just seem familiar,” Shiro breathed in a hushed voice.

Arranging the customised bouquet carefully, Keith let himself smile. He’d been waiting for these words, wondering when the day would come he’d hear them. He knew what came next just as well. But at least in the modest flowershop, they would have a backdrop of vibrant colour to end this moment.

“I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

That was the cue. Keith delivered the usual closing words, also delivering the bouquet to Shiro. Nobody had to know he had slipped in a dozen forget-me-nots.   

**-436-**

Unsheathing his blade, Keith charged forwards. Their opponents were quick but no match for Keith’s speed and agile fierce poise. Even with the chainmail and worn gold armour, he moved with precision and clear skill. The stranger in silver armour joined his side without hesitation, a strong fighter in his own right. Duck. Strike. Parry. Hit. Together, they took out the ambush effectively. Catching his breath, Keith expected his impromptu comrade to walk away from all this. After all, it hadn’t been his fight _in the first place._ But he didn’t. Instead, the knight with silver armour that matched his eyes frowned.

Keith wasn’t sure why he stepped forward and _felt_ concern ripple through him too.

“I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

Something _sincere_ about that caught all of Keith’s attention. The words weren’t possible, not when they were from entirely different realms. Yet an ache ran deeper through him, past his bones and tired muscles, into places once forgotten.

“Sorry. I… think you have the wrong person.”

It didn’t sit right. Despite it being _the most logical answer,_ Keith was still grappling with the implications of this not being the truth. Because this stranger had fought with him better than _any_ of the other knights in his own realm. They’d worked so naturally together. It had been remarkably fluid, the way they fell into comfortable tandem. _Comfortable._ That was not a feeling Keith was exactly _used to._ Their eyes met once more, gentler.

The blaring of a horn broke the moment. A bugle call. The stranger immediately leapt into motion, taking a defensive stance. Keith didn’t blame him. It was a dangerous place to just be standing around. That horn sounded like an ally but there was no telling. Just lingering here like this, _with strangers,_ was unthinkable. Keith chided himself for breaking every pattern, every _promise_ for this one person.

The person was now leaving.

Keith’s eyes trailed after him slowly.

He watched until the stranger was but a small silhouette on the horizon, unsure why every fibre of his being was _urging_ him to run. To follow. To _call out._ But his legs felt heavy, rooted in where he was, _where he was going._ He didn’t follow anyone, not anymore. And as for calling out, Keith had no name to use. So Keith did none of those things, despite the uncomfortable dichotomy. Desperate. Unshakeable. _Irrational._

Keith never saw the silver knight again.

**-23-**

“You seem familiar… I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

Keith shrugged, dropping the change into the man’s palm before closing the cash register.

“Sorry. I think you have the wrong person.”

**-602-**

Keith didn’t know how many meetings had come and gone anymore between him and Shiro. He lost count, he forgot to count somewhere down the line as his soul drifted through time and the many different lives he’d lived out. But in this particular lifetime, Keith remembered it. That counted for something at least. The fact he _could_ remember was proof that he could influence at least one factor of the loop. Though it also served as a grim reminder to how fragile this was.

Keith’s entire existence hinged on the moment the loop would finally unravel.

And this would be the final loop

This time, he was going to stop it. No matter what it took, no matter what the cost.

Keith was going to break the loop.

But determination could only get Keith so far when the time actually came. He’d dived into it headfirst, the tension and strain rolling off his body as he strode towards Shiro. Shiro, who had been looking to catch his eyes across the room. _Takashi Shirogane,_ the mysterious person beginning to consume his entirety. His _eternity._ Clearing his throat, Keith threw them into the loop without hesitation. He could _do this._ He could pull it back. He could end this. 

“Are you just gonna stand there staring, or are you gonna talk?”

“I- sorry - I… have we met?” _Yes we have, we have met. I’m Keith and you’re Shiro and we’ve lived thousands of lives and each and every single one has led to this._ Damn this. The words were out of his grasp, spiralling through his head messily. That was as far as it got. Instead, the second Keith opened his mouth, out came words that stung. Words he rejected. These words were once his, but they were wrong. _This was all wrong._

“Really.” His voice cracked, splintering his crumbling composure further. _No, stop. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. I can do it, I have to do it._ Brow furrowing, Keith dared push against the universe itself. 

“You-” _don’t remember?_

Nothing sounded. The words shrivelled up on his tongue.

“You-” _need to help me figure this out we can stop this together._

The words didn’t sound, leaving them in the stagnant silence. Eyes searching Shiro’s face imploringly, Keith persisted again.

“Y- you-”

He persisted again.

“You’re-” _important and I can’t go another lifetime without getting through this moment together._  

And again.

“You-”

And again. The results were futile each time. A continuous glitch, Keith’s words simply threw them right back to the moment prior. Shiro even failed to respond to each attempt, or appear to have even _heard_ the attempts. Any deviation from the norm simply made the loop more aggressive in shackling them to it. It was unescapable.  _Shiro… I’m sorry._ Voice hushed, Keith let the words run their course.

“You’re doing this now?”

“No,” Shiro said, voice agonisingly neutral. Keith couldn’t read it. _What does that mean, do you know-  can you remember is it just me-_ “It’s not like that. You just seem familiar.”

Stepping forwards, Keith clasped Shiro’s shoulder tightly. _Please._ A squeeze. _Please remember. I am familiar, you do know me._ Shiro looked at him blankly, eyes trailing down to the hand on his shoulder. That was enough to shatter any ounce of hope that had foolishly built in Keith’s chest. As it burst, he jolted back. It was clear then, this was out of place. This was too much. Lips pursed, he clenched a fist.

Keith couldn’t change this.

Wallowing about a situation wasn’t Keith’s style. But he couldn’t deny that _whatever this is,_ It was so unfair. So unspeakably horribly unfair, the way they had been chained to this ceaseless loop. Gravity pulled them together, and they orbited naturally. Only the orbit was _exactly the same_ each time. Nothing changed. Nothing _could_ change. This story was written into the very fabric of their universe. For their whole lives - _every life._

“I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

Fist clenching, Keith turned his back to Shiro. He could only resist this for so long. The words were going to come out. Even if the universe had to pry open his mouth viciously and pour them in for digestion. It would.  _No, no, no. No._ It did. 

“Sorry, I think you have the wrong person." 

_I'm right here._

**-7-**

His knees were pretty scratched up, which was perfect! That marked success, that meant Keith had been on a _really_ big exciting adventure just as planned. Face covered in dirt, hair ruffled and small kicks dusting his legs, he walked determinedly through the forest. Just because he was small and only recently nine, didn’t mean he was _lost_ out here. He spent most of his days here, finding cool rocks, following the wildlife, watching the birds. It was better than enduring more homeschooling at his new fosterhome that struggled to keep tabs on his movements.

Stumbling upon a particularly interesting rock, Keith crouched down and scooped it into his hand. He brushed off some of the dirt, examining the marble patterns running down the surface. It was smooth on one side, a little bumpier at the top. Rustling from the trees had Keith standing sharply. Eyes narrowed, he picked up a nearby stick. _You never know._ This was Keith’s secret hideout. He hadn’t had unexpected guests before.

Through the woodland ahead, a boy not much older than himself poked his head out. Keith kept the rock protectively hidden in his palm. It was a nice rock. _He_ had found it! Nobody else could have it unless they were really special and he wanted to give it to them as a gift. And whilst he wanted to tell the other boy that much, what he said wasn’t his _first thought._

“Are you- just gon’ stand there... _staring_? Or are you gon’ talk?”

Walking forwards, the other boy scratched across his cheek. The skin looked irritated around what looked like a new scar across his nose.

“I -sorry!!” The boy exclaimed, holding his hands up with enthusiasm. Clearly, he didn’t want any trouble. Keith dropped the stick, but didn’t back down just yet.

“Have we met?”

Moments later, Keith gave the boy the rock. 

**\- 892 -**

Quarantine had been established early on in the outbreak. But it still wasn't soon enough. Those infected by the Galra Virus were separated from the those deemed safe. International turmoil had plagued the world. With no cure, the infected remained quartered off whilst the unaffected taken to refuge points. Realistically, everybody knew it would only be a matter of _when._ For  _everyone._

So of course, it was through the barbed wire that Shiro was looking at Keith. Of course, he showed up here. On the other side. Keith would have walked away, would have left this because he wasn’t sure he could deal with losing _Shiro_ alongside his own humanity too. But those eyes rooted him to the spot. It wasn’t like anything Keith had seen in _any_ of the lifetimes he had remembered this, remembered him. Heart lurching forwards uncomfortably, _he wasn’t ready for this,_ Keith hovered by the edge of the fence.

Not today. _Not now._

Shiro stood there, eyes blown wide. Not with surprise, not with confusion. _With shock._

“Are you just gonna stand there - staring,” Keith started, voice hoarse and shaky because _Shiro was reaching out, pushing fingers through the gaps in the fence_. “Or are you gonna talk?”

“I-” Fingers brushed Keith’s palm, and that small electric touch said enough. His pulse rocketed as Shiro choked back a sob. “Sorry.” _Sorry sorry sorry._ Keith pursed his lips, feeling his foundations rupture. Shiro knew. _He knew._

“Have we met?”

They both remembered.  

“Really…” Keith blinked back tears, squeezing his fingers through the fence to stroke Shiro’s cheek. “You’re doing this now?” 

**Author's Note:**

> happy sheith day :'))) 
> 
> i was just thinking about using 'he is looking at keith' as motif in writing that kept coming back. then i randomly was just thinking about how it could be interesting to play around with dialogue. use the exact same dialogue but shift the scene each time and see how the dialogue also slightly shifts in tone. this is deliberately meant to feel a bit frustrating and heavy at times, the dialogue and themes are looping round and round but we seldom get a resolution. 
> 
> i hope you enjoyed this!

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Asymptote](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11478999) by [shxrogane (minsazucar)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/minsazucar/pseuds/shxrogane)




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